Refugees: A serious problem or a Syrian problem?

Since 2011 a civil war has been going on between Syrian rebel groups and the Syrian government led by President Al-Assad. The conflict has centered around extremely harsh government policies and violent crackdowns on the public. The chief difference between these groups is that the government and state militias are predominantly Shi’a Muslims, while the rebels are Sunni Muslims. This event served as a breaking point for the people of Syria. This has resulted in a mass exodus from Syria in which Syrian refugees have been sought asylum in countries such as Turkey, Germany, Sweden and others countries, mostly located in Europe.

This issue has highlighted a number of different perspectives on ways to handle the situation, which shows no signs of slowing in the immediate future. On one hand this a population in desperate need of assistance. However, the political and economic consequences to other nations cannot be ignored.